Watchmen Star Shares His Theory About Which Character Also Had Doctor Manhattan’s Powers

As Watchmen fans recall, the big twist of the HBO’s series was that Emmy winning actor Yahya Abdul-Mateen 2 wasn’t just Cal Abar but was secretly none other than Doctor Manhattan himself, the big blue of the Watchmen universe. In the end he did a very surprising thing and seemingly transferred his omnipotent and universe altering abilities to Regina King’s Angela Abar. Though the series ended before the question could ultimately be answered, Yahya has taken to Twitter to reveal his fan theory about the series to the world and potentially make things even more complicated.

“Long time ago I said I had a theory about Watchmen that I never shared. Mind you, it’s MY THEORY, not insider information,” he tweeted. “Here goes: Dr. Manhattan also gave his powers to Old Man Will. Remember in the first (or 2nd) episode, when Will was in Angela’s bakery? Remember the boiling eggs? He reached in the pot and took out the hot egg and held it in his hand without flinching. If I remember correctly, he also ate it, scalding hot! How’d he do that?”

He continued, “He was also, what 105 years old? Maybe part of the deal he cut with Dr. Manhattan in EP 8 flashback was that he’d live long enough to get revenge, or see Angela at peace. 🤷🏾‍♂️ And maybe Dr. Manhattan left his powers in a few eggs that he could eat over time…Theory needs more work. But I def think Old Man Will had powers. What y’all think? Am I on to somethin or nah?”

Though there’s not explicitly anything in the series that confirms or disproves his theory, Will and Doctor Manhattan do have some scenes together lending a hair of credence to the idea. The trouble is that if it were true it would seemingly take away from the power of Angela now having the powers of the character and the ability to re-write the world. In any event, fans of the series chimed in to Yahya’s tweets with many saying that the actor is onto something with his idea.

Watchmen won big at this year’s Emmy Awards with the series bringing home 10 awards including Outstanding Writing, Outstanding Limited Series, and Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie for Regina King and Outstanding Supporting Actor for Abdul-Mateen II. Following its Emmy wins, series creator creator Damon Lindelof said doing a second season now would feel like a “huge betrayal,” so don’t expect an answer to this theory unfortunately.